Seeing Ourselves in Context

One of the most challenging thing to do is to see ourselves (and our actions) in context. This is particularly difficult when we work within an established organization. We can become distracted from our mission by so many long-standing biases, including “the way it’s always done”.

When organizations reach an impasse, functions often express that they cannot work together. To be certain, there is myopia operating. Groups are too close to their own work to see how they affect others. Or they simply don’t have the time or inclination to examine what might really be happening.

The art of blame is mastered — however they haven’t considered the larger picture. We cannot fully understand things until we back off and see things from another perspective.

We often think of clients or customers, but rarely think of how we affect our peers. Most of us do not fully understand the demands placed on those in roles that touch our own.

If we took the time to do this — we might see our own actions in context.

Dr. Marla Gottschalk is an Industrial/Organizational Psychologist. She is a charter member of the LinkedIn Influencer Program. Her thoughts on work life have appeared in various outlets including Talent Zoo, Forbes, Quartz and The Huffington Post.